The present invention relates to a rivet supplying apparatus, and more particularly to a rivet supplying apparatus for supplying a blind rivet to a riveting device from a rivet feeder.
A rivet feeder is known in which the rivets are fed one by one in an orientated manner. The rivet from the rivet feeder is manually set into the nose of a riveting device, e.g. a handy rivet gun or an air rivet gun. Such manual operation, however, is one of the main factors which prevent the improvement of the efficiency in the riveting work.
Accordingly, various proposals have been made to eliminate the manual rivet supplying operation from the riveting work. For example, in an automatic rivet supplying apparatus as disclosed in the Japanese Utility Model Laid-open Publication No. 146181/78, the nose of riveting device is so disposed with respect to the supplying apparatus that the axis of the nose of the riveting device aligns with the axis of one end portion of a rivet supplying conduit. The nose of the riveting device urges guide means towards a limit switch for permitting the rivet supplying. The above mentioned rivet supplying apparatus can supply rivets sequentially to the riveting device nose without manual operation. However, since the mandrel of the rivet leads the rivet body within the supplying passage in the apparatus, the rivet may be caught in the supplying passage. Accordingly the riveting work is often interrupted to re-set or remove the caught rivet from the supplying passage.
Furthermore, the positioning of the rivet relative to the nose of the riveting device is conducted via the mandrel of the rivet. In order to supply the rivets having various sizes to the riveting device, it is necessary to prepare some separate apparatus appropriate to the respective rivet sizes (i.e., mandrel sizes), or to prepare some replaceable or detachable guide means for the respective rivet sizes. Such replacement, however, also interrupts the riveting operation with the result that the efficiency of the riveting work is further degraded.
Moreover, the spring coils are used for rivet guidance which may change with passage of time, so that periodic inspection and maintenance must be required.